Joystiq

Plunder's strategy comes from teamwork, simple tactics, and upgrades. When two boats attack a single target, they'll overpower it more quickly. But since since vessels can't overlap, players need to work together to fit them next to targets and box-out enemy ships. And upgrades play a role. At the beginning of the game, each ship gets a limited number of upgrades to its speed, offense, and defense. But certain towns gather resources -- rum, wood, and gold -- that can be swapped for additional upgrades. Those bonuses can make towns stronger against raiders or add better powers to players' ships. Plunder felt largely like a multiplayer games, although a single-player mode introduces players to these basics.

All the Game 3.0-rage, Plunder will also include a map-editor. This intuitive tool sprays islands, towns, and other items over the hex-based worlds like a paint program. After a few minutes, we created a brand new map; Certain Affinity says that this is the same tool as the one used to create the 25 included levels. Instead of a universal upload/download system, gamers will virally pass maps to each other through friend lists. So once you play a new map, it'll automatically be saved to your system.

I liked my brief time with Plunder. It's a simple game, but I think that longer play with seven other people will reveal deeper strategies and techniques. Certain Affinity is exploring other ways for players to win games besides the town-capture mode, but plans to ship the game first with that game type. I'm looking forward to seeing how Plunder's maps, strategies, and game modes evolve after its release.